Case Number 21406

Lemonade Mouth

Every purchase you make through these Amazon links supports DVD Verdict's reviewing efforts. Thank you!

All Rise...

Judge Gordon Sullivan once had Lemonade Elbow.

The Charge

Band Together

Opening Statement

The musical is one of those genres that simply won't die. Like the Western,
the musical has passed its peak (when it seemed like there was a new one every
week), but still has a strong appeal to a wide audience. Disney discovered this
with their High School Musical franchise that
brought the musical to the tween audience. A little more grown up than the
sing-along kids films (like The Lion
King) but less mature than adult fare (like Les Miserables), the High School
Musical films could appeal to tween and young teen audiences, opening up a
new demographic for Disney dollars. The result was a bit of a phenomenon, with
multiple sequels and all kinds of merchandising tie-ins. Time, however, marches
on, and the stars of High School Musical grew up and lost their appeal to
their original audience. Disney wouldn't let such a profitable market lie fallow
for long, and Lemonade Mouth is their response: another high school-set
musical with a positive attitude and lots of jams.

Facts of the Case

Five kids meet in detention, and it just so happens that they each have
important secrets and musical talents. They decide to form a band (named,
appropriately enough, Lemonade Mouth) to speak out for all the kids who feel
marginalized in a high school where the principal (Christopher McDonald, Requiem for a Dream) puts all his focus
on the athletes while ignoring all the other students. As a band the quintet
will help each other through their problems and teach others to be true to
themselves.

The Evidence

Lemonade Mouth is what would happen if Disney remade The Breakfast Club as a musical.
All five of the band members are stereotypical outcasts, mostly for obvious
reasons. One girl is too smart, another is a self-conscious rebel, etc. Of
course they're all wildly talented on their chosen instruments. In addition to
their outsider status and musical genius, each of them has a movie-of-the-week
family problem lurking in their past. One girl has an overbearing father,
another has a father dating a younger woman, etc. Of course their participation
in Lemonade Mouth gives them the strength to deal with their problems.

The story wouldn't be complete without a villain, and that is ably provided
by Principal Brenigan. He shoves all the non-athletic programs into the basement
to make room for his corporation-sponsored athletic programs. He wants all the
students (especially the ones in Lemonade Mouth) to submit quietly to his
iron-fisted rule of the school. This gives our heroes someone to fight, and
provides the film with its wonderful positive message. By rallying all the
non-athletic students, Lemonade Mouth teaches kids the value of being themselves
in the face of conformity and other social pressures.

Despite its fairly conventional plot (which should guarantee a modicum of
success), Lemonade Mouth fails in pretty much every way possible. The
plot and "moral" are conventional to the point of absurdity. Not even
the voiceover and flashback structure can keep the film from being totally
predictable. The band itself produces some of the most bland, tepid music I've
ever heard. It's a fairly poppy mix of rock, with just enough electronic/hip-hop
elements to make it crossover worthy. Anyone who's listened to Disney radio will
be familiar with the style, though these songs are a particularly bad example of
it. There's also a rival rap-rock group whose appearance almost prompted me to
throw something at the television.

The DVD itself is as tepid as the music. The film itself (presented in an
extended version that's elongated from the original TV airing) looks pretty
good, with strong colors and a decent level of detail. The music is obviously
the highlight of the audio track, and it's mixed very aggressively (so keep the
remote handy). The surrounds get a decent amount of use during musical scenes,
but most of the film is dialogue driven out of the center channel.

Extras include a "Rock Along" mode that's basically a karaoke
version of the film, and an "exclusive scene." The scene is in an
interview format and gives the characters a chance to talk about their lives a
little bit more. Finally, this release includes a second disc with a digital
copy of the film for mobile viewing.

The Rebuttal Witnesses

The preceding assumes an adult audience. This film seems to work okay for the
tween audience. I watched it with an 11 year old who ate up the whole film (and
it was far from her first time seeing it). Obviously the younger audience isn't
totally familiar with all the other stories Lemonade Mouth is patched
together from, so the stereotypical nature of the film likely won't bother them.
Similarly, the music isn't so far from what's on the radio these days that
youngsters won't find something to appreciate. So, while the film will likely be
a dud for parents, I wouldn't rule it out for young teens/tweens who enjoy
music.

I said earlier that the film failed in pretty much every way possible.
Perhaps the only way in which the film succeeds is in casting. McDonald does an
excellent job with the principal (despite his stereotypical character), and even
the younger performers do a fine job. They're saddled with clunky dialogue and
transparent moral messages and yet they still come off as decent human beings
despite the handicap. I'm not sure they'll all grow up to Broadway careers or
anything, but for this film they were surprisingly competent.

Closing Statement

Lemonade Mouth is obviously not my cup of tea. Parents: This is one to
put on for the kids when you don't have to be there with them. Despite the trite
story and generic music, there's enough "can-do" attitude in the music
and characters to appeal to young kids, but the lack of substantial extras on
this DVD make it hard to recommend to anyone outside the film's biggest fans. If
a sequel gets made, I'm sure we can count on better extras.